Boot camp participants harvest grapes in the vineyard. Source: Wine Boot Camp® RELATED LINKS Join the Wine Club

All stages of winemaking, from growing and crushing grapes to fermenting, blending, and bottling the final product, are covered in this series of all-day workshops offered from late summer through early autumn by Affairs of the Vine, a wine education and events management firm based in Sebastopol, Calif.

The intensive 12-hour Wine Boot Camp® sessions combine private winery and vineyard tours with hands-on viticulture demonstrations, food and wine pairing workshops, tasting sessions focusing on particular varietals and appellations, and blending workshops in which participants blend their own signature bottles of wine. Instructors are recruited from among professional winemakers and viticulturists in the regions where the workshops take place — usually within an hour or two of San Francisco — and each session concludes with a private dinner featuring ideal pairings of food with local wines.

The cost for 2008 workshops is $475 per person, including all seminars, educational materials, a vineyard lunch, dinner with paired wines, extensive wine tasting, a bottle of wine created by the participant, local ground transportation and an "I Survived" T-shirt. Affairs of the Vine also offers custom programs for corporate meetings and private groups. Information: www.winebootcamp.com, 707-874-1975.

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